I’m on a tour, another short one, Dinosaur Jr: 3 shows in the U.K. and one in Berlin. It’s a merciful schedule, day on, day off. In Glasgow, after a walk in the sun (it made a rare appearance in Scotland), I spent the afternoon listening to Sam Amidon, an ‘experimental folk musician’ from Brattleboro Vermont.
I read the beginning of a New Yorker piece about him and, intrigued by the ‘experimental folk’ idea, I listened to his music instead of finishing the article. I liked what I heard. Serendipitously, he was playing in London the next day and I was able to go to the show. I tell the story in the podcast. Check it out (commercial free!):
RAW Impressions ep. 126: folk enough, not breaking up
more links to listen or watch…
Spotify
Apple
LouTube!
I mindlessly picked my uke while I picked through Sam Amidon’s wiki and discography. Pretty soon I was playing something that felt like a song. You can hear the beginnings of it on the show. It’ll be the ‘remote podcast’ theme song from now on…maybe.
Sam Amidon uses old folk songs as a springboard into modern soundscapes. My old-sounding melody became a new song about my phone. The miraculous handheld computer that speaks to the sky.
I finished it in my Berlin hotel room. It’s called Angel in the Ether. It’s a stretch to call it a tribute to Sam Amidon but I conceived it under his influence for sure.
I’ve been thinking a lot about the double edged sword of technology. How it is improving my life and tearing the world apart simultaneously. I’m grateful for it and worried about it and I wrote a song about it, kinda...Check it out below… -lou